Mirroring national and provincial government, the City of Johannesburg is made up of a legislative arm (the council); an executive arm (consisting of the executive mayor and the mayoral committee); and an administrative arm.

The council focuses on legislative, oversight and participatory roles, delegating its executive function to the executive mayor and the mayoral committee. The council's principal role is as lawmaker, with the other key role to debate and discuss issues.

The council approves by-laws, City policies, the Integrated Development Plan, tariffs for rates and service charges, and the City's budget.

It also has an oversight function and receives regular reports from the executive mayor and the mayoral committee.

The primary duty of councillors, particularly ward councillors, is to represent the needs and interests of their constituents. They are responsible for building community involvement, with ward committees playing an important role in providing information on the needs and interests of local communities and ensuring that public voices are heard.

Structure of the council

The City of Johannesburg has a council made up of 270 councillors representing various political parties. The council debates local government issues - involving both policy and by-laws - and proposals are ratified or rejected.

There are various structures dealing with the wide-ranging tasks of council: